Not a Pawn. The Damn Queen

His first day in the city, and he was already getting into trouble, but would really surprise anyone? Maybe just someone that didn’t know him, because the ones that did, knew how trouble seemed to be drawn by him, and always followed him. He was thrown out of a window, people that were near, looked as it ended up making a loud noise, “For fuck’s sake.” luck for him, he had invulnerability.

---

It was rare these days that Thea found herself in Central City. She was working form home more, and Roy was doing more of the visits to the other cities. But he was having a daddy day with their twins today. So she was headed to Central, just to check on verdant and run a few errands. She raised an eyebrow at the man that had just been thrown from the window. “Uh....you okay there?”

Iris laughed knowing how protective Barry and her dad were. It was honestly suffocating sometimes, but she knew it was out of love. She nodded when Thea said she had gone through a lot and she knew that it wasn’t always going to go away, but she could hope right? “Well I think you came out a stronger woman because of it. “You’re right. It’s weird because I lost weeks of my life that I’ll never get back. You know? Things happened and there was someone here that looked like me, walking in my shoes. It’s…creepy,” she cringed a little at the thought. 

----

Thea loved how protective her husband and brother were, but it could be annoying. She was very capable of looking after herself. But it was nice at time to know they were always there. “Thanks...” She murmured with a smile. Thea was proud of the person she had become. It had been a hard battle, but she was glad she’d made it through. “I know what you mean..... but you’ll make yourself crazy trying to think about those weeks” There were black holes in her memory too, but she just tried to forget about them. “My honest advice..... just try to move on” She murmured with a nod. “It’s a lot easier said that done.... but it’ll make it better in the long term”

“Well, I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon.” He promised with a smile, pressing a kiss to his son’s cheek. They were his family now. He knew them better than he knew himself. He loved them. And they would come to love him too once they realised he held nothing of the old Roy’s weaknesses. “There’s too much here that’s important.” He muttered, before chuckling a little at her words. “We’re a team, your dreams are my dreams. All that sappy stuff I would have put in our vows if I’d been able to speak after seeing you in that dress.”

---

“Good. At least I don’t have to make you stay instead” Thea teased with a little smirk. She’d never force him to hang out with them, but Roy always seemed to want to be around them. They were both pretty content with staying home with their family. It made Thea happy that they both had the same opinions of the value of family time. “Too true...” She mused with a smile. Being with their children was the best thing in the world. “You’re such a sap” She teased with a little laugh. Apart from the the day the twins were born, their wedding day had been the happiest day of her life. “Let’s go....” She murmured, motioning to the car. “Thought we could go get some lunch”

“I had a sword in my hand by the age of five, I don’t have the best reference for milestones.” Nyssa reminded her with a small laugh at the correction, before letting out a sigh at her assurances. “That doesn’t bring me much comfort. I would rather they be in no danger.” She noted. “And I know most of my enemies and yours are the same, but not all. Until I know I’ve culled that number a little, I’d prefer to err on the side of caution.”

---

“Then we need to learn you some” Thea teased with a little grin. To be honest, She had known it wouldn’t make Nyssa feel better. “They are never not going to be in danger. It’s why I’m going to make sure they can protect there selves” She needed to make sureher twins could look after there selves. “And to be honest Nyssa. You cull one enemy, and another one rocks up”

“Uncle Ollie is popping round today” Thea murmured, as she sat on the couch, watching her twins play on the floor. She loved spending time with her brother, and would constantly be moaning at him that he didn’t come see them enough. She smiled, watching her twins get excited at the mention of their favourite uncle. She loved the connection the twins had with her brother. “Let’s just hope he doesn’t forget this time”

“I know. I’m assuming Oliver and Roy are just as bad as my dad and Barry,” she chuckled. She had heard about some of the events that took place for Thea, but never got all the details. “You better not because I would never recover,” Iris joked taking a sip of her coffee before letting out a sigh. “I know…it’s just hard. Don’t get me started on sleeping at night. I know what I went through is on a whole other spectrum, but how did you recover from everything?” 

---

“They really are” Thea murmured with a little laugh. Thea could understand why though. She’d been through a lot in her life, and was constantly used as bait to get Ollie and Roy out in the field. She could totally see why they were over protective of her. It didn’t help the frustration, but she could understand it. “Depends on your definition of recovery...” Thea mused, with a shrug. She often found that she would recover from one thing, and then something else would happen. “I wouldn’t say I have fully recovered.... I’ve gone through too much to ever fully recover.... or be that girl that I was...” Though she really didn’t want to go back to being that girl. “But.... you move on, and you find new ways to cope. You find new ways to love, and be loved. You might not ever get over what happened..... but you find a way to live. And that’s okay”

“One of the things I like about you.” Nyssa commended with a small chuckle before lining up her shot. “Do they actually call me that, or is that all you?” She asked, a hint of amusement in her tone, but mostly she just sounded touched by the sentiment. “I will, I promise. I don’t like lingering too long around them though, not while I might still bring danger into their lives.”

---

“Oh? Do go on” Thea teased with a little smirk. She lent against the table and grinned. Thea really did like spending time with Nyssa. “Nyssa. They can hardly talk” She pointed out, a laugh. “You’re more.... Ssa.” She mused, grinning her. She fully intended her children to call her Auntie when they could speak properly though. “Please. With Roy and I as parents, and Ollie as an uncle. They’re already at their quota of danger. You don’t need to worry”

“Yeah, well… a week’s a long time at that age, isn’t it?” Roy muttered by way of explanation, returning her kiss happily before nodding at her question. “Yeah, I was just making sure everything was in top shape before opening tonight. After Keystone I just wanted to double check everything was okay back here.”

---

Thea just laughed, shaking her head as she looked at her husband. “That just means you shouldn’t ever leave us for that long ever again” She teased, nudging his side. She knew that by having businesses in multiple cities it would mean one of them would occasionally have to be aware of a while, but it didn’t mean that she had to like it. “Mm...” She murmured, understanding what he was talking about. “I love how invested you are in my baby...” She continued, clearly talking about Verdant, rather than her actual children. To know that Roy was as invested in her business ventures as she as meant a lot to her.

“I know, but after a while I tend to feel claustrophobic,” she sighed rubbing the bridge of her nose. It was hard to keep it easy and with the people in her life so protective, it was only going to get harder. Looking back up at Thea, Iris chuckled. “It was a joke…kind of. I know for a fact that you could kick my ass so…. I’m fine or at least I will be. It’s just been a lot of adjust to and get back into the right headspace, you know?” 

---

“I can relate” Thea murmured, but didn’t offer much more. Thea didn’t like to think about the many events that had led to Oliver and Roy being overprotective with her. But there had been many, and whilst she adored her brother and husband, their protectiveness could get too much. She just laughed, shaking her head. “I would never kick your ass Iris” She didn’t beat up the people she liked. “But I know what you mean....” She murmured, with a nod. “I have no doubt that you’ll be fine Iris..... it just takes time, and that’s okay”

“You should have known better than to challenge an al Ghul.” Nyssa joked with a small smirk, before nodding at Thea’s words. “Fair enough.” She nodded, knowing Thea had other priorities she needed to get back to. “How are your adorable little hellions?”

Thea just raised an eyebrow at him. “You know me. Can’t resist a challenge” She murmured, as she set the balls back up. She was determined to win this time. She couldn’t let Nyssa beat her again. “Mm. they’re great” She mused wihth a smile as she looked up at her friend. “You should come around soon. They miss Auntie Nyssa”

Roy’s face brightened immediately into a genuine smile at the sight of Thea. There were nothing but warm memories associated with her, his heart rushed immediately with the force of it. The smartest thing his lesser self had ever done was marrying her. “Not immediate plans, no.” He told her with a grin, dropping to his knees to scoop Tommy up as he approached. “I’m all yours.” He promised, adjusting his son in his arms. “You doing okay, kid?” He smiled, feeling the boy eye him curiously, searching his face with all the focus a toddler could muster… before seemingly being satisfied and settling in with his arms wrapped around his father’s neck. 

Thea would always feel happy around Roy. Every time she was in his presence if just felt like she was at home. She knew it wasn’t good to be so dependant on a person, but she would happily always be dependant on her husband. He had saved her life so many times, and he would be enternally grateful that he was hers. “Good....” She murmured, watching for a second as Tommy looked at his father. “It’s like he forgot who you were for a second...” She murmured, adjusting Joanne in her arms, so that she could lean up and kiss her husband briefly. She pulled back, and just smiled at him all. “Everything okay in there?” She asked, nodding towards Verdant.

“I’m just happy to be back at work. Sure they have me working on fluff pieces and I am bored as anything, but at least I’m working,” Iris shrugged while walking back to the couch with two mugs of coffee. She hated the little bubble she had created around herself, but the nightmares weren’t getting any better and she still felt a little off. Babysitting Jenna helped immensely, but that was just a small step. “If you ask me how I’m feeling, I will punch you,” she shrugged letting the mug touch her lips.

---

“They just want to look after you Iris” Thea pointed out, a little smile on her lips. People had always been the same with her to be honest. It was why she was glad she owned her own business. Nobody could stop her then. But she was understanding more and more lately that she much preferred to be at home. She liked being with her kids, and was trying to do more of that. There would be plenty of time to work when they were older. “Uh.... I won’t ask then”

“Come on, one more game. Maybe you’ll win this time.” Nyssa goaded as she flashed the notes her opponent had just handed over. She had found she was quite good at shooting pool, and it was a fun enough pass-time to keep her occupied. And it was proving at least lucrative enough to pay for her drinks.

---

“So you can beat me again?” Thea mused, shaking her head as she looked at her friend. She’d thought she was good at pool, but Nyssa was even better than she was. She glanced at her watch. Roy was watching the kids, but she didn’t want to be away for too long. “Okay..... one game. And then I really have to go”

This was going to be all too easy. They might only be Roy’s work colleagues and subordinates, but they had been sufficiently fooled and they saw the man day in and day out. Even if Roy Harper kept parts of his life hidden from the world, he knew what they were, had every detailed mapped out carefully in his head. Maybe once his mission was done they would let him keep this life - he might do a damn sight better at it than the old model. “Hey!” He called out when he saw someone he recognised - or at least that the old Roy recognised, quickly matching the name to the face in his head as he locked up Verdant until it was due to reopen at night. “Just finishing up here, did you need me for something?”

“Let’s go find daddy yeah?” Thea murmured, a smile on her lips as she got one twin after the other out of the car. She hadn’t told Roy about planning them a family afternoon, but she knew he wouldn’t mind. Roy adored spending time with their kids. The twins were used to being around Verdant, so she wasn’t worried about them being hurt. And they were relatively good, so didn’t run away from the car when she got them out. She smiled at her children, offering out her hands for them to hold, before walking towards the car. Ahh. There Roy was now. Perfect timing. “Hey you” She teased, letting go off Tommy’s hand as he went running off towards his dad. Joanne kept by her side, and she didn’t mind that at all. “Mm.... Yeah. Hope you got no plans cause we’re having a family afternoon”

“This is foolish. This box should be locked away and never brought to the light of day again.” Zatanna crossed her arms as she observed the crowded room in distaste. Foolish mortals tampering with what they didn’t understand. The only way for this to be resolved was for her to be the rightful guardian and take the sole responsibility for the dangers within.

Thea hadn’t been too sure about this box. She’d heard stories about Pandora’s box, but wasn’t too sure if they were actually true, or just stories. It was pretty curious. She looked over at the other woman was talking, and tilted her head as she considered what she was saying. “So... the box is dangerous then?”